Help with reducing the cable bill....

[queenofthehive]

We pay a crazy amount a month for cable. I would like to cut out cable and maybe go to using a Roku to stream Netflix, Amazon Prime etc but how will I be able to get HBO, news (local/Fox news) and sports channels? Can someone explain the best way to go? Thank you.

 

[LJSquishy]

You won't be able to get HBO or sports channels unless you pay for a fancy cable/satellite package. It's just how it is.

If you still want to receive local news and such, you'll probably need some sort of antenna thing or converter. I'm not really sure, but you'll probably need something.

Roku will allow you to watch Hulu, Netflix, etc as long as you subscribe to them.

 

[dawnhaze]

We pay a crazy amount a month for cable. I would like to cut out cable and maybe go to using a Roku to stream Netflix, Amazon Prime etc but how will I be able to get HBO, news (local/Fox news) and sports channels? Can someone explain the best way to go? Thank you.

HBO doesn't sell streaming-only subscriptions. Short of borrowing an HBO Go login from a friend with cable, you're pretty limited as far as legal ways to watch HBO without a cable subscription. I'm pretty sure the Roku has news "channels" so you should be able to find national and world news on some of them. You may have to get your local news online. As for sports, there are paid subscription services you can use to stream them. I have an Apple TV which is a similar concept as the Roku and it has several sports options, I would assume the Roku has the same thing or something close.

 

[automaticsoap]

Comcast started offering a subscription with just Internet and HBO -- but it's only offered in certain markets. Not sure where.

 

[bjgonzo]

We went cable free earlier this year and bought an antenna for less then $20 for local channels. It isn't the rabbit ears you are thinking of, it is flat, wall mountable and paintable antenna and works great! We also have Apple TV so W can stream from our Mac or iPads and Roku. I don't like Apple TV because it doesn't have an amazon prime app, but I love the streaming capabilities. Even buying what we have bought, we were ahead financially within 4 months, we have too many TV's lol.

 

[disneypharm]

You probably wouldn't need HBO if you get a Roku with Amazon prime and Netflix. We cancelled our cable, phone, and internet package 2 years ago. Comcast offered us the basic cable with internet for only $55/month. We bought 3 Rokus for 3 TVs and got subscription for Amazon Prime and Netflix. Now, we only pay $55 for basic cable, internet plus $7.99/month for Neflix.
I remember when we had regular cable, I was always frustrated to find something good to watch. Over 200 channels and nothing except commercials. Now, I get to watch my daily news, regular network shows, and thousands of movies through Amazon prime and Netflix.

 

[Praying Colonel]

We cut our cable/internet bill in half by switching to AT&T Uverse. Introductory 12-month offer was half what Time-Warner was charging, plus we got a multi-room DVR with much more storage space. Time-Warner wouldn't match it, so we left and have been very satisfied so far.

(Also would've saved about the same amount by going to DirecTV--just preferred Uverse.)

 

[powellrj]

You probably wouldn't need HBO if you get a Roku with Amazon prime and Netflix. .

I still need my HBO and Showtime, if for no other reason than Game of Thrones and Homeland and DH still needs his sports channels so we keep basic cable plus our 2 pay channels and save $100 a month off of what we paid before.

We do have amazon prime and netflix for our roku boxes which is what the kids like to watch.

 

[DawnM]

What will it be once the introductory price is over?

We cut our cable/internet bill in half by switching to AT&T Uverse. Introductory 12-month offer was half what Time-Warner was charging, plus we got a multi-room DVR with much more storage space. Time-Warner wouldn't match it, so we left and have been very satisfied so far.

(Also would've saved about the same amount by going to DirecTV--just preferred Uverse.)

 

[TBLaube]

What will it be once the introductory price is over?

Our cable and internet bill is $166/ month. We have the cheapest internet, uverse 300, and three boxes total. I am seriously debating whether to cancel cable because it is pricey. A drop in service to the next lowest is only a few dollars cheaper, but you lose showtime/starz and so many channels.

 

[Surfinpiratee]

You won't be able to get HBO or sports channels unless you pay for a fancy cable/satellite package. It's just how it is.

.

Yep!

Cut out any extras. Those movie channels! DVR, on demand and just go basic!

 

[vacationer1954]

I still need my HBO and Showtime, if for no other reason than Game of Thrones and Homeland

For now, we're still able to watch Game of Thrones and Homeland by renting discs from Netflix.

 

[Nayan]

Also, depending who your provider is, it could cost much more to have just internet instead of a bundle. If you want the sports/movies (I hear ya GoT fan!) I would drop it down as low of a package you can live with and only order HBO when GoT starts, cancel when it ends. That way you won't be paying for something you're not watching.

 

[Praying Colonel]

What will it be once the introductory price is over?

Honestly, not worried about it. I know friends and co-workers who have called Uverse at the end of the introductory period and negotiated keeping that same price for another year or 2. If they don't want to do that, I'll start looking for a better deal with another provider. Competition's awesome.

 

[Astylla]

I know you are hesitant because you feel you "need" HBO and Showtime but honestly..the best thing we ever did was ditch all our cable and use Netflix and Hulu Plus exclusively.

We tend to torrent any other shows we need or find them from other sources - or just buy the dvd's when a good sale happens.

It's not for everyone but we have been cable free nearly a year and haven't missed it at all. We get our news online as well as sports news.

You can as others mentioned get a HD antenna and can receive some local channels that way. Good luck.

 

[abolanwoski]

For now, we're still able to watch Game of Thrones and Homeland by renting discs from Netflix.

Yes, if you are ok waiting a little, you can get a season pass (after the season is over) for all the "pay" shows on most outlets (apple, amazon) or rent from netflix. This is how I watch Dexter, GOT, the walking dead, etc

But if you MUST watch right as they come out, you are SOL unless you subscribe.

 

[MSSANDRA]

Honestly, not worried about it. I know friends and co-workers who have called Uverse at the end of the introductory period and negotiated keeping that same price for another year or 2. If they don't want to do that, I'll start looking for a better deal with another provider. Competition's awesome.

And it really works most of the time. We did an introduction special when we moved into our house 8 year ago as they have a different cable company in this area. When the offer was up, we told them we were ready to drop the package and they extended it and continued to do so every time up until last year when they would not. We dropped it down to the basic cable which is like 11.00 and has the basic local news channels. We also have netflex and stream a ton of stuff off the internet. Oh, we also dropped our land line. Guys miss the spots stuff sometimes but most of the games they can stream, and if we want a special movie, a 1.00 red box a couple times a month is still MUCH cheaper!

 

[rachel09985]

We lowered our cable bill by calling and just saying it was too much and telling them we will have to cancel if they can't lower it! It worked!

 

[3Gsandme]

OP, what sports does your husband watch? You can buy Sports package subscriptions you can watch on the Roku. We watch hockey through hockey streams. It works great.

I don't have a problem with paying 1.99 a week for my must see episodes of shows I can't watch via Netflix, amazon and Hulu. It's still a huge savings.

 

[3boymthr]

Our cable and internet bill is $166/ month. We have the cheapest internet, uverse 300, and three boxes total. I am seriously debating whether to cancel cable because it is pricey. A drop in service to the next lowest is only a few dollars cheaper, but you lose showtime/starz and so many channels.

If it makes you feel better I am paying $250/month for basic for two tvs plus phone and internet from Comcast. We have been with them for 18 years because there were no other options. Our house is built into the side of a hill topped with 50 ft tall trees so unless we wanted to spend $$$$$$ cutting down trees and excavating even satellite was out. I have called many times to negotiate it down but they just won't budge. I thought about dropping down to just phone and internet and streaming but the savings was nullified by the fact that they were going to require me to upgrade my internet from the basic tier to the most expensive (they have a restriction on the amount of data I can download). Fios finally came to our neighborhood last month. I'm going to switch after christmas and save over $100 a month.